The Mouse is Going After the Fox; Dollar Wise for Fast Food; A Wrinkle in Allergan’s Plan

Fox-y mouse…

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Today’s juicy merger gossip is brought to you by Fox and Disney. Apparently, a deal is thisclose that will have Disney scooping up Fox’s studio and television production assets. The deal, which is rumored to be worth about $60 billion, will also include the acquisition of Fox’s stakes in Hulu and Sky. As for its news and sports division, Disney is taking a pass on those entities. But Disney isn’t the only one with its sights set on Fox. Comcast and Verizon are also trying to get in in some Fox action. It’s just that right now Disney seems to be getting the best crack at the media conglomerate. Wall Street seems to like the news considering it sent shares of Fox up over 3%. But the question you might be wondering about is why Disney even needs $60 billion worth of Fox’s assets? Doesn’t it have more than enough of its own? Well, yes, it does. However, in case you missed it, the entertainment industry is changing, with a big push towards streaming and direct to consumer models and believe it or not, picking up those particular assets over at Fox will give Disney a much much bigger global reach. And who couldn’t use some more global reach, right?

Bucking the trend…

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Fast food restaurants are engaged in a bloody dollar war. But that just means good news for consumers. McDonald’s is bringing back its dollar menu, which it ditched just four years ago because it didn’t pull down the kind of cash McDonald’s wanted to see. As for the term “dollar,” well that might be a bit generous in its definition. To be clear, the fast-food chain is offering the $1-$2-$3 Dollar Menu. If you’re in the mood for a sausage burrito, cheeseburger or any-size soft drink, well then, feel free to fish out that dollar bill that’s burning a hole in your wallet. Otherwise, prepare to shell out more. Not to be left out of the fast food fiscal fun, Burger King and Wendy’s are also trying to woo you with their version of “value” menus. But it’s Taco Bell that’s really taking aim at the Golden Arches with 20 items listed for just a dollar. For McDonald’s, the cheapy menu is its answer to win back customers. The company apparently lost out on some “500 million transactions” because it didn’t have a value menu. Ironically, or not, Taco Bell’s dollar menu actually generated $500 million in sales. To make up for the lack of profitability that comes with McDonald’s having a value menu, the chain is expanding its “Signature Crafted Recipes” – which is really just code for more expensive menu items that will offset the value items.

A wrinkle in time…

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There’s a new Botox sheriff in town and Allergan doesn’t like it. Not one bit. Enter Revance Therapeutics Inc., a small biotech company that holds the formula for RT002, aka “the better, longer-lasting botox.” If it’s approved people can start sticking their faces with the stuff as early as 2020. Which is great news for everyone. Well, everyone except for Allergan, the pharmaceutical giant behind Botox, the original, whose stock fell over 4% on the news today. In fact, today Allergan hit its lowest price since 2013, after losing a third of its value in the last five months. And, while RT002 uses the same main ingredient for wrinkle reduction as Botox does, that being botulinum toxin Type A, it also uses the company’s proprietary peptide technology, which is apparently the reason why this particular formula lasts about a month longer than Botox. In any event, Allergan wasn’t especially impressed by Revance’s new data released today and called it “underwhelming.” As for Allergan’s response, you could probably just call it sour grapes.